APTOS — Contrary to popular belief, the Central Coast Section Open Division III football championship is this week.

It wasn’t last weekend, though it may have felt like it. That’s when the No. 5 Mariners stunned top-seeded and perennial powerhouse Palma 49-6 in the semifinals — in Salinas, no less, and with a running clock in the fourth quarter — to avenge an epic regular-season loss to the Chieftains.

The Mariners received plenty of high-fives, hurrahs and headlines for their last win, so much so that Mariners coach Randy Blankenship warned his players about the fine line between confidence and overconfidence.

“Don’t get caught in the rat trap,” Blankenship told his players Monday in the weight room.

Because No. 2 Sacred Heart Prep — the team standing between the Mariners and their fourth CCS title since 2013 — is no joke.

“We’re there. We’re at ‘The Show.’ If they want a section title they gotta go out and play and perform like they have,” Blankenship said. “Our focus is on us right now. We can’t worry about those guys. I’ve got a ton of respect for them. You look at them on film and you can’t (see) a weakness. For us, can we stop patting ourselves on the back that we did a great job against Palma and come out and play?”

Aptos (10-2), the third-place finisher in Pacific Coast Athletic League’s Gabilan Division behind co-champs Palma and Salinas, faces the Gators (11-1) for the Open D-III crown at Westmont High in Campbell on Saturday at 3 p.m.

Aptos High’s Josh Powell strips the ball from Palma quarterback Grant Sergent during the first half of their CCS Open D-III semifinal last weekend. (Vern Fisher – Monterey Herald)

The Gators, winners of five CCS titles and two NorCal titles since 2010, finished second to Menlo-Atherton in the Peninsula Athletic League’s Bay Division. They boast a power run game and a stifling defense under second-year coach Mark Grieb, a former quarterback who led the now-defunct San Jose SaberCats to three Arena Football League titles.

SHP, which went 3-7 last season, has tasted defeat once this year — to Open Division I finalist Menlo-Atherton. It has held opponents to a touchdown or less in five games, including West Catholic Athletic League programs Saint Ignatius and Sacred Heart Cathedral during these playoffs.

“I think we have something to prove,” Mariners running back Josh Powell said. “I don’t think we’re overlooking them at all, because they deserve the second seed. Obviously, they’re good. We’re not overlooking them but I don’t think we’re scared either. We’re ready to come out and win.”

Marcos Reyes, the Mariners’ record-setting running back and a standout linebacker, agreed.

“The hunger is definitely there,” he said. “I don’t want to call that Palma game a fluke, but we definitely still have a fire. It’s not going to be a fluke. I don’t expect it to be 49 to 6. I think it’s going to be a close game, but my guys still got the hunger and still got the fire. Everybody wants it.”

The Gators allowed zero yards on the ground and forced three turnovers in their 19-7 win over the Irish last week.

“Challenge accepted,” said Reyes, pausing to laugh. “I’m at least going to get one yard.”

And it is a challenge. The Mariners, who continue to buck the adage that defense wins games, have produced three 100-yard backs and 500-plus rushing yards in each of their past two playoff games. They need 343 yards of offense, according to statistics published on mbaypreps.com, to break the school’s single-season yardage mark (5,502 in 2012).

With last week’s outburst, Aptos set the school mark for points in a season. They have 555, besting the 545 total set across 13 games in 2013.

“They’re not against teams like Sacred Heart Prep,” Blankenship said of the stats.

Aptos High coach Randy Blankenship has warned his players about the “rat trap” as they come off a big win over No. 1 Palma. The No. 5 Mariners face No. 2 Sacred Heart Prep on Saturday for the CCS Open Division III title. (Brandon Vallance – Special to the Sentinel)

Though respectful of SHP, Blankenship is optimistic that his team will be ready for its biggest game of the season. After all, they’ve done it several other times already this year.

After starting the season 8-0, the Mariners endured a pair of gut-wrenching losses in successive weeks to close the regular season.

Palma made two goal-line stands in the fourth quarter on Oct. 26, the second one as time expired, to preserve a 40-35 come-from-behind win. The Mariners bounced back and gave Salinas all it could handle the following week. But the Cowboys scored a pair of unanswered touchdowns in the fourth quarter to rally for a 28-24 win.

The Mariners stormed back with back-to-back outbursts in the playoffs, first stomping Terra Nova 62-37 to avenge a 2017 postseason loss before earning sweet revenge last week against the Chieftains.

“Right now, our leaders are looking forward to playing; those are our seniors,” Blankenship said Tuesday.

The players seem to do a good job of listening to their coach. And when he warns of a rat trap, you know they’re not going to be satisfied until the championship trophy is in hand.

Entering the season, Aptos’ No. 1 goal was to win a league title. They fell short by the slimmest of margins.

But Blankenship stoked the fire. There was another trophy to be had.

“After the loss to Salinas, Coach B asked us if we would trade a league title for a CCS title,” said Hunter Matys, Aptos’ quarterback and safety. “And that caught all of our eyes, that, potentially, we could be CCS champions this year. That kept our drive going these past two weeks at Palma and Terra Nova. We finally got the opportunity to win a CCS title, so that’s just amazing. It has kept us driven.”